Lead Empress'Seo Chae-hyun (21) did it. She made it to the finals for the second time in a row on the Olympic stage.
Seo Chae-hyun scored 72.1 points in the women's lead semifinals of the 2024 Paris Olympics Sports Climbing Combine (Bouldering + Lead) held at Le Bourget Sports Climbing in Paris, France on the 8th (Korea time). In the lead category, he tied for fourth with Brooke Labout of the U.S.
The sports climbing combine of this competition will determine the ranking with a score of 200 points by adding up the scores of the bouldering and lead matches. The top eight of them will advance to the finals and compete for medals. Seo was 13th with 44.2 points in the previous bouldering. He combined his Boulder and lead scores for a total of 116.3. Seo Chae-hyun took the ticket to the finals by finishing eighth. Yanya Garnbrett (Slovenia) advanced to the final with a whopping 195.7 points and No. 1 overall.
사진=Yonhap News
사진=Yonhap News
I tried to turn the tables. Seo Chae-hyun ranked 13th out of 20 in the bouldering held on the 6th. After the game, Seo Chae-hyun said, `I'm a little disappointed, but I think I've overcome the problem of not fitting well. I think I can turn it over from the lead and go up enough." Lead is an event in which you have to grab a hold installed on a 15-meter-high rock wall and climb as high as possible within six minutes.
It was a reasonable confidence. Seo Chae-hyun's main event is lead, not bouldering. He learned sports naturally thanks to his parents, who are sportsclimbers. Seo Jong-guk, coach of the national sports climbing team, is his father. Seo Chae-hyun surprised the world upon her adult debut in 2019. He conquered the World Cup stage three months after his debut. He ranked No. 1 in the 2019 International Sports Climbing Federation (IFSC) World Cup rankings in the women's lead category. Currently, his IFSC world ranking speaks objectively. Seo Chae-hyun is ranked third in the lead, 18th in bouldering, and 4th in the combine.
사진=Yonhap News
사진=Yonhap News
Seo made her 13th appearance. I was full of confidence. He played the game with a bright expression on his face. The pace was fast, but he didn't lose his composure. He reached the 30-point mark in just over two minutes. Seo Chae-hyun also stably broke through the 50-point section that led to the area of 'Ma'. He tried to finish the race, but ended the challenge at 72.1 points. He ranked first among the 13 players and jumped to the final third place in a short period of time. Now there are eight remaining players, and Seo Chae-hyun watched the other players' performances with nervousness. No. 15 runner Miho Nonaka of Japan and No. 16 runner Grossman Natalia of the United States fell early in succession. Seo Chae-hyun succeeded in advancing to the finals by confirming at least 8th place regardless of the results of the remaining 4 players.
Seo Chae-hyun will play in the final round of the Olympics for two consecutive years. This time, I dream of 'happy ending' He burst into tears at the Tokyo Games three years ago. She was the youngest female contestant at the time. He finished eighth and last in the final. It was even more disappointing because he passed the preliminary round in second place. Seo Chae-hyun dreams of a moment of joy in her second Olympics.
